Nick Hodge - Angel Publishing

Nuclear Reactor Design Breakthrough

Some serious questions are starting to be asked as the nation prepares to build its first nuclear plant in decades.

The answer to these questions, as you'll soon learn, will be worth a fortune to on-point investors.

It's like this...

Of the 104 nuclear reactors in the United States, no two are the same. In fact a recent AP report said “experts blame for causing construction and regulatory delays and leading to bigger bills for power customers.”

And now that a nuclear rebirth is upon us, industry executives want to make sure they're not repeating past mistakes.

Baking nuclear cookies

The key, according to nuclear thought leaders, is reactor pre-approval.

The idea is to have the government preapprove several reactor designs, and then let companies choose from the list.

Knowing which reactors are on the list will be a key tool in earning easy nuclear profits once new projects are approved.

To some extent, we're already seeing this play out...

Thanks to an $8 billion loan guarantee from Obama, Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is about to build the country's first new nuclear plant since before my dad graduated high school. And instead of custom-building the reactor, the developer is going to use one of five designs under review by the Nuclear Regulator Commission.

Southern has chosen Westinghouse Electric Co.'s AP1000 reactor, but it could've also chosen:

GE (NYSE: GE) / Hitachi's (NYSE: HIT) ABWR or ESBWR;
Areva's (PARIS: CEI) EPR; or
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' US-APWR

This new approach is helping to make nuclear energy cheaper. Instead of paying hundreds of millions of dollars to design each plant, that money can be spent just once.

And the cost savings don't end there...

New plants, for the most part, will be prefabricated.

Instead of assembling the plant piece-by-piece onsite, the AP1000 would be delivered in 300 preassembled sections — allowing for better, quicker, and cheaper assembly.

It's the same technique Ford applied to revolutionize how cars were made. And it must work, because it's pretty widely adopted.

Next-next generation

Going long GE, Areva, Hitachi, and Toshiba (the parent company of Westinghouse) is probably a good nuclear strategy.

We already know that their reactors are on the short list for this new pre-approval process.

But there's one more reactor design that may make the cut... It's called the APR-1400, and it's being built by the Koreans.

Featuring built-in shields against missile attacks and elaborate safeguards against earthquake damage, I'm dubbing this design the next-next generation nuclear reactor.

It was good enough to beat out all the competitors mentioned above in a recent bidding process in the United Arab Emirates.

The UAE didn't go with Areva, GE, or Westinghouse. For the reasons I just mentioned, it awarded a $20 billion contract to the Koreans.

It just so happens, I've discovered a small company that's trying to import these reactors to the United States. It's a microcap right now, trading for less than $0.75. But it won't stay that way once it solidifies this deal with the Koreans...

The profit opportunity here is so unique and urgent that I've put together a full video report on what I've found.

Today is the first day we've released it, so there's still time to learn about this potential 100-times-your money play before the video starts making rounds on the Web.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Energy Holdings of Billionaires

Welcome to the Energy and Capital Weekend Edition — our insights from the week in investing and links to our most-read Energy and Capital and sister publication articles.

You know these guys, right?

That's Buffett, Icahn, and Paulson — three of the most legendary investors in the game.

But do you know what they all have in common besides being multi-billionaires?

They each added to energy positions in the last quarter.

The Samurai's Secret that can Make You 2682%

700 years ago, the first true Samurai blade was born after a few grains of this metal was added. Today, that metal is indispensable to modern industry, and yet, we're running short.

Find out why the Chinese are now hoarding every ounce they can get their hands on... And how one company may have found the solution to a global crisis.

What are billionaires buying?

At the end of each quarter, fund managers have 45 days to report their activities to the SEC. That deadline just passed for the second quarter, and here's what we learned...

Buffett, whose net worth is $47 billion, is long ConocoPhillips, General Electric, Nalco Holding, NRG Energy — either on his own or through Berkshire.

Here's how the holdings break down:

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP): 29.1 million shares
Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM): 421,800 shares
General Electric (NYSE: GE): 7.77 million shares (and an undisclosed amount of preferred shares)
Nalco Holding (NYSE: NLC): 9.15 million shares
NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG): 6 million shares

And here's what Paulson, the $12 billion-dollar-man who helped Goldman create securities that were designed to fail is buying:

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM): 9.17 million shares
Mariner Energy (NYSE: ME): 10 million shares
Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA): 3.4 million shares
Mirant Corp. (NYSE: MIR): 18.2 million shares
Deven Energy (NYSE: DVN): 3.3 million shares
Smith International (NYSE: SII): 2 million shares
Cheniere Energy (NYSE: LNG): 7.46 million shares

Icahn, the poorest of these fellows with only $10.5 billion, is equally bullish on energy, Here are the energy stocks he's into:

Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC): 2 million shares
NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG): 2.37 million shares
Ensco (NYSE: ESV): 240,000 shares
Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK): 12.74 million shares

Why?

Well, the simple answer is rising prices for both oil and electricity.

With peak oil approaching, they know demand is about to outpace supply, and the companies able to access the increasingly hard-to-get nectar are going to be worth a pretty penny.

And with increased regulatory pressure on coal, utilities are adding more and more megawatts from renewables and natural gas.

The utilities you see these guys buying — NRG, Mirant, Constellation — are at the forefront of this transition.

It's pure fundamental analysis...

World needs lots of energy; there's not enough of it; the price is going to rise.

They aren't getting caught up in — and trying to react to — the market minutia we hear about on a daily basis: unemployment, housing numbers, consumer price indices, etc.

They're simply making bets on the certain future of energy.

That's what we help you do each and every day with articles like those below.

Before you read those, I'll leave you with this recent quote from John Hofmeister, former Shell Oil President:

I think over the next 5 to 10 years we will peak in the production of what's called conventional or easy oil. We will not in anyway peak relative to the resources left in the earth. But the resources left in the earth will be higher risk and higher cost to produce, which will increase the cost basis on which ultimately gas prices are set.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Energy Stock Technical Analysis: How to Spot Energy Stock Trends
Editor Ian Cooper addresses a reader's concerns, and expands on a trading system discussed in recent articles.

Going Mobile with Full-body Scans: Buy American Science & Engineering Inc.
Editor Christian DeHaemer talks about the upside of the full-body scan stock.

Alternative Energy Infrastructure: Why this One Company will Control Midwest Wind Power
Editor Jeff Siegel discusses the one company that could eventually control 12,000 megawatts of Midwestern wind power.

Nanotechnology Investments: Nanotech Stocks are Poised for Growth
Editor Steve Christ examines a new generation of wealth made possible by nanotechnology investments.

Sitting Pretty: One Company's Recent Discovery that it's Sitting on Millions Worth of Crude
Thanks to a world-changing Cold War blunder, investors have a brief window to bank 180 times their money on this tiny oil company's $1.44 shares... Energy and Capital tells you everything you need to know about this hidden treasure trove of crude in this video.

Tiny Nuclear Company Leads American Resurgence: The Nuclear Energy Story Fox News Isn't Telling You
This just-released report shares with readers the details on a little-known nuclear company that's set to explode on certain hidden news that could bank you $36,950 by next summer.

Underwater 'River' of Oil Confirmed in Gulf: Large Underwater Oil Plume Confirmed
Analyst Adam Sharp examines the newly-discovered plume of oil in the Gulf of Mexico.

Chinese Water Stocks: Chinese Drought — Not Floods — is the Real Story
Editor Nick Hodge reveals why drought — not flood — should be the real Chinese story grabbing headlines these days.

Sustainable Development and Responsible Investing: A Not-to-be-Missed Conference, September 15-18, 2010
Focused on the world of environmental and sustainability finance, renewable energy and efficiency investment, application and implementation strategies in their major forms, this is an all-encompassing conference platform for sustainable investment, infrastructure, and regional management with a central focus on the global energy transition.

Chinese Water Stocks

You've probably heard about the recent flooding in China (and in Pakistan, but we're not focusing on that today).

Over the weekend, the Yalu River in Northeast China swelled to dangerous levels, killing four people and displacing 100,000.

This comes after floods in the South and West killed almost 4,000 earlier this year.

You've heard about this because it's the kind of story that's come to be known as 'man bites dog'.

Common occurrences — like dogs biting men — rarely make the news. But throw a little twist in there — some urgency, some natural violence, some death — and these kinds of stories become an editor's dream. By extension, this type of reporting makes statistically uncommon events seem to occur with great frequency.

There are plenty of examples of this: shark attacks, plane crashes, homicide... the list goes on. We wouldn't think these incidents were as common as we do if the headlines pointed out to us every day that passed without one of them occurring.

So if you didn't know any better — based on the headlines this summer — you'd think China was going the way of Venice.

That's a good way to miss out...

Just as allowing 'man bites dog' stories to keep you out of the water or off a plane can mean missing out on great experiences; falling victim to the Chinese flooding fallacy can mean missing out on a great investment.

Because the everyday story in China isn't flooding...

It's drought.

At the very same moment the media is caught up with the attention-grabbing story of raging rivers and washed-out villages, China began its biggest relocation program since the construction of the Three Gorges Dam.

Almost half a million Chinese will be forced to relocate to make way for the South-North Water Diversion Project, an endeavor aimed at diverting the Yangtze River to the Yellow and Hai Rivers to quench the almost waterless North, which includes Beijing.

Why?

Maybe because China has 20% of the world's population but only 7% of the world's water resources...

Maybe it's because half of China's largest 660 cities constantly face water shortages...

Maybe it's because 90% of Chinese cities' groundwater and 75% of its rivers and lakes are polluted, leaving 700 million people* to drink contaminated water every day.

(*If you're keeping track, that's twice the population of the United States.)

And it's definitely because areas south of the Yangtze have 80% of the water and 36% of the land, while the North has only 20% of the water and 64% of the land.

I guess Beijing is China's Las Vegas — only capable of being built through immense water infrastructure projects.

This isn't going away

In an effort to deal at least partly with this problem, China is willing to relocate an entire river and part of its population.

But the efforts won't stop there.

Just as China is going to great lengths to secure energy resources for its booming population (if you haven't seen Christian DeHaemer's video on how to profit from that angle, you should watch it immediately), it is going to similar lengths to secure water resources...

Not just moving rivers; but initiating a sustained effort to bring its water treatment infrastructure into the 21^st century.

Two companies fundamental to that progress will be Tri-tech Holding (NASDAQ: TRIT) and Duoyuan Global Water (NYSE: DGW).

And wouldn't you know it...

According to a press release, Tri-Tech “received a $6 million contract for the upgrade and expansion of a wastewater treatment plant in Kuitun City of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region” just last week.

And Duoyuan recently beat earnings estimates, thanks to a surge in water equipment sales.

According to Reuters: “Revenue from water reuse equipment jumped 45 percent on continued demand for the company's circulating central water processors, fully automatic filters and electronic water conditioners. Water purification equipment revenue increased by 36 percent.”

This is a long-term investment that goes well beyond the market's recent tribulations.

I'd buy them, hold them, and love them.

And keep in mind that the sensational headlines you hear and see in the media rarely tell the whole story.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. I've also been telling you about a company that's signed a contract with a Chinese outfit to build and market nuclear powered desalination units. While it won't solve China's water problems, cheap desalination would help out a great deal. That company is also pursuing other nuclear activities that, much like China's drought, are being ignored by the media. Click here to learn what they're doing and how it could be a lucrative investment for you.

Nuclear Start-up Companies

When billionaires want to get richer, they invest in nuclear energy.

I've already written twice (here and here) about Bill Gates' venture, TerraPower, and its goal to create modular nuclear reactors (100 MWe to 300 MWe)...

But now additional news is surfacing about billionaires looking for more fortune by playing the nuclear game.

I'll show you how to join them below, but first let's see if we can't untangle the web of nuclear investments being made by some of the world's richest men.

The billionaire nuke club

As mentioned, Gates has thrown down on TerraPower. It's a spin-out from Intellectual Ventures — a futurist firm focused on patenting breakthroughs of all kinds, and a known hang-out of Microsoft alumni.

But Gates is only one part of a former-Microsoft-bigwig-turned-nuclear-venture-capitalist profit ménage à trois.

Former Microsoft chief scientist Nathan Myhrvold is also invested in TerraPower. (Vinod Khosla has taken a stake, too, but he's small potatoes in this basket.)

Fellow billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is taking a different route...

Through his own venture firm Vulcan Capital, Allen is heavily vested in Tri Alpha Energy — a stealth nuclear start-up focused on, dare I say it, plasma fusion. But don't tell anyone, it's supposed to be a secret.

Even so, recent reports say the company just raked in $50 million to $80 million in venture capital. Other investors include the venerable Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Venrock, and New Enterprise Associates.

Yes, Goldman Sachs is investing in nuclear fusion. They — like Bill and Nathan and Vinod and Paul — have money, love money, and want more of it.

And they all seem to think a nuclear breakthrough is the way to get it.

Join them...

Good luck getting a personal piece of TerraPower or Tri Alpha Energy. The billionaire boys are playing it close to the vest, wanting to keep any future profits for themselves.

But there is a publicly-traded entity pursuing similar activities and causing quite a stir in both nuclear and investment circles.

For starters, it has signed an MoU with a company making modular nuclear reactors similar to TerraPower. The MoU is the first step in a joint venture that will allow the two companies to license, build, and market these fridge-sized nuclear reactors on a global scale.

They already have 150 purchase orders.

TerraPower, which you can't invest in, is in talks with Toshiba to make its reactors.

The public company has a deal in place, sales interest, and you can get shares now.

Forget fusion — this is better

Even if fusion can be figured out, it'll be years before it comes to market.

The company I'm telling you about is ready to deliver now.

They have the MoU for modular reactors mentioned above. But they also have another deal with a Chinese firm to build and sell nuclear powered desalination units.

As I told you last week, these units are 80% cheaper than the competition, and produce both electricity and freshwater.

Interest for these units is already pouring in as well. The desert gulf states want them... Australia wants them... Africa wants them...

And they cost $3 billion apiece.

That'll make for some nice revenue for a company still trading for less than a dollar.

And they'll be ready for sale long before fusion is developed and brought to market.

But if you still aren't convinced, this company has a third operation going on that could dwarf the other two...

It plans to import reactors to the U.S. and build the first investor-owned utility in three decades.

I first discovered this plan when the stock was down around $0.10. Today, it's approaching $0.80.

As word slowly gets out about this story, the share price is only going to continue to climb. And that's why you need to get in sooner rather than later.

To help you do that, I've put together this whitepaper on the opportunity. It'll tell you all about the company, its plans, and why you should consider investing.

It's the next best thing to getting in on the ground floor with a billionaire.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

China's Energy Stimulus

Welcome to the Energy and Capital Weekend Edition — our insights from the week in investing and links to our most-read Energy and Capital and sister publication articles.

If you're looking for energy profits, all signs point to China.

Even with a slowdown in the second quarter, its GDP growth came in over 10% - three times higher than current growth in the U.S.

And the International Energy Agency recently reported that China consumed 2,252 million tons of oil equivalent in 2009 - good enough to knock the U.S. out of the top spot for the first time, well, ever.

With a growth machine that hungry, you can bet the Chinese are developing a multi-tiered strategy to fix it.

Billionaires' Game-changing Fossil Fuel Gamble

Ladies and gentlemen, we're witnessing the end of an energy era.

George Soros and T. Boone Pickens know it -- which is why they're investing millions of dollars in the world's next biggest "future fuel."

Click here to find out how their gamble in this new energy giant could bring you upwards of 1,925% gains.

The Tortoise and The Hare

It's no secret that China is whooping our butts in the energy race.

It produces 50% of the world's solar panels, has 3 of the top 10 global wind companies, and boasts the largest installed wind market in the world.

Made possible by employing both short- and long-term strategies, China's progress has come with some cost. But the dividends of this tortoise and hare strategy are already being reaped.

Take the current earnings season, for example.

I've watched (and profited) as Chinese solar company after Chinese solar company reported earnings and blew away estimates.

Solarfun (NASDAQ: SOLF) doubled analysts estimates and announced a strategic investment from Hanwha Chemical;
Renesola (NYSE: SOL) beat estimates and raised third quarter guidance;
China Sunergy (NASDAQ: CSUN) easily beat profit and margin estimates;
LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) beat estimates for revenue and earnings, and guided full year sales much higher;
And JA Solar (NASDAQ: JASO) beat revenue estimates and raised its full year sales forecast by 350 MW.

And it's not only the Chinese solar market that's shining...

Vestas (COP: VWS) announced this week it's received an order for 74 MW worth of wind turbine from "a major Chinese independent power producer." It's Vestas' second Chinese order in a month.

And earlier this month, Minyang Electric - a top 5 Chinese wind supplier - said it has plans to raise half a billion in a U.S. IPO later this year. That comes less than one year after Asia's largest wind power generator, China Longyuan Power Group (Hong Kong: 0916), raised $2.2 billion in a Hong Kong IPO in which Wilbur Ross took part.

But here's the best part...

All that came before this announcement...

Almost a Billion for "New Energy"

The plan hasn't been officially released, so I don't have all the details yet, but China Securities Journal reported this week that the country will soon release a plan for investing $739 billion in "newly developing energy industries" through 2020.

That's about as much as our entire stimulus.

According to China's National Energy Administration, the money would go to "nuclear, wind, solar and biomass energy, as well as clean coal, smart grid, distributed energy and new energy sources for vehicles."

We'll have to wait and see exactly how that money is spent. But we don't have to wait to profit.

I've found one company that has partnered with a big name Chinese firm to manufacture and sell nuclear powered desalination units. You can read about that company and its other activities in this investment prospectus.

And it's not just clean energy that the Chinese are going after. They're also buying up all the oil they can get their hands on. My colleague, Chris DeHaemer, recently posted a new video on how to profit from that angle.

Indeed, as the U.S. continues to wither on the vine, we'll be increasingly looking to China's constant growth for energy profits.

You can catch up on the rest of this week's investment ideas below.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Electric Car Opportunities: Do Electric Cars Really Have A Chance?
Green Chip editor Jeff Siegel provides an update on electric car development.

China's Energy Grab: How a Mongolian Oil Company Could Make you Filthy Rich
China's thirst for energy is unmatched. And they're buying up all the resources they can get their hands on, including the hundreds of million barrels left behind because of a Cold War blunder.

Nuclear Powered Desalination: Nuclear Desalination: 80% Cheaper
Energy and Capital editor Nick Hodge discusses nuclear powered desalination and its benefits over other systems.

Transocean Stock (RIG:NYSE): The Ironclad Contract That Could Pay You Handsomely
Energy and Capital Editor Ian Cooper takes a look at the BP contract that could indemnify Transocean.

The Nuclear Story the Media Isn't Telling: They Only Reported Half the Facts... Here's the Rest
Fox News published a story about the re-zoning of land in Idaho for nuclear reactors to be built. The piece discussed how many jobs will be created, when construction could begin, and how much land will be required... They even revealed which company is the major player in all of this. But what they didn't tell you could make you more than $32k in the coming months.

Investing in Frontier Market Stocks: Seek Value - Buy Growth in Frontier Markets
Wealth Daily Editor Christian DeHaemer explains why you should bail on Wall Street and offers a few frontier market stocks.

LED Technology Boom: The Little Lighting Outfit Cornering a $100B Market
Still in its infancy, the Financial Times recently reported this breaking technology "promises to shake up the global market." This tiny, $1.20 engineering firm is literally cornering a market the DoE estimates will be worth over $100 billion by 2020.

The VIX Indicator Heads Higher: Fear Gauge Jumps as QE 1.5 Falls Flat
Wealth Daily Editor Steve Christ takes a look at the VIX Indicator and offers two ways to trade on fear and greed.

Clean Energy Race: Have We Even Entered The Clean Energy Race Yet?
The rest of the world is leaving the United States in the dust when it come to a clean energy transition. Will our inability to embrace the future turn us into a second-rate nation?

Nuclear Powered Desalination

I don't normally count watching the Travel Channel as doing research, but I just might start.

Last night I watched as Anthony Bourdain traveled to Dubai, the most luxurious of the United Arab Emirates.

And though the local fare looked incredible, strongly influenced by spicy Indian and Pakistani curries and biryani - an import from the laborers responsible for constructing things like man-made islands and indoor ski resorts - it was their thirst for massive amounts of energy that struck me most.

Several times throughout the show there was reference to this theme; the massive amounts of BTUs it took to make snow in the desert, the copious cubic feet of natural gas burned to desalinate all the water needed to sustain the Shiekh's oasis.

It's why per person the UAE consumes 10,538 kilograms of oil equivalent per year - a third more than the United States' 7,794.

That may soon change. I've found a company that can not only drastically reduce their power consumption, but the associated cost as well.

An 80% Cost Advantage

According to a report out this week, the UAE spends $3.2 billion dollars on water desalination every year.

They have 70 plants that account for 14% of the world's total desalination capacity. And they do it at a cost of $1.94 per cubic meter.

But a breakthrough in both nuclear energy and desalination - controlled by one company - is about to put a major dent in that pricetag.

By pairing portable nuclear reactors with desalination units, this U.S.-based company is selling scalable desalination units that not only provide freshwater, but excess electricity and carbon credits as well.

Take a look at how nuclear powered desalination stacks up against the competition:

The numbers speak for themselves.

That's why the company has already received interest from around the globe, including South America, Europe, Africa and, of course, the Middle East.

The CEO has numerous potential buyers and expects to sell “several units” by the end of the year. At a cost of $3 billion for a 650 MW unit, that means the buyer basically gets either electricity or water for free.

Just the Half of It

As the company gears up to reap billions in revenue from nuclear powered desalination, the stock has gone on a tear. It's up 300% in the past three months, and I still think it's way undervalued.

Here's why...

Desalination is only a third of their strategy.

The company will also individually sell the portable nuclear reactors used in its desalination units.

And perhaps its most ambitious endeavor - the one no one is talking about - is building a nuclear power plant here in the States, for which it already has local approval.

Maybe it's because the company is so small. Maybe it's because it's about to partner with a foreign company to import a reactor. All I know is that this profit story is being egregiously underreported.

And that's why I'm blowing the lid off it with this investor exposé.

Like I said, the stock is up about 300% in the past three months, and my readers are already richer because of it. But it's still trading for less than $1.00.

And with another analyst initiating coverage on it yesterday with a $3.50 price target, I don't know how long it will stay that low.

But I know with a nuclear powered desalination unit 80% cheaper than its competitors, this company is headed much higher.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

The Next GE

Thanks to a push to revolutionize our power grid…

A small group of hi-tech startups is about to take a major chunk out of a $297 billion/year market.

In the coming years, these outfits will become the next GE, the next Google, and the next Microsoft.

Get their names and ticker symbols now, before they take off.

Natural Gas Vehicles, Chinese Solar, and Smart Grid Growth

Welcome to the Green Chip Stocks' Weekend Edition — our insights from the week in everything renewable energy and cleantech, as well as links to our most-read Green Chip Stocks and sister publication articles.

Everything we've been telling you has been coming true.

Here are four major points we've been hammering home:

Chinese solar dominance amid European tariff reductions
An emerging market for natural gas vehicles
Strong push for smart grid and efficiency
Major consolidation as the industry grows

Washington's starting ANOTHER undeclared war...

It's not against terrorists, Communists or drug cartels - but against you and me, right here in the U.S. of A.

Click here to discover the secret $6.3 trillion offensive against America's IRAs and 401(k)s...

And the one "guerilla wealth" move you'll need to survive it with your retirement assets intact - or even far larger than you're figuring right now.

Learn more here.

And here's what we've seen just in the past week or so:

Chinese solar

Every Chinese solar company has met or exceeded earnings expectations.

Well, it's only been two... But the rest are coming up and will do just as well.

On Tuesday, Solarfun (NASDAQ: SOLF) reported earnings per share of $0.59. That was more than double analysts' expectations of $0.25 — and the stock surged as much as 15%.

The stock was quickly upgraded by multiple banks.

Then on Thursday, GT Solar (NASDAQ: SOLR) reported earnings of $0.11 per share — almost three times consensus of $0.04 per share. It also nearly doubled its profit forecast for the year.

That stock opened up 15% higher than its previous close.

These high earnings are being driven as a result of the end or reduction of subsidies in major European markets, including Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Czech Republic.

We beat that drum here, here, and here.

Natural gas vehicles

The ports of California have been cleaning up for years by converting the thousands of diesel trucks that operate there to run on natural gas.

The fuel is cheaper, burns cleaner, and offers the same power. Plus, it can be sourced domestically.

Win, win, win, big win. And politicians love it.

So it was no surprise to learn that even though a full energy bill has been shelved for the year — which means no renewable energy standard (RES) or carbon cap — Congress may still muster the bipartisan strength to pass a reduced version that would:

Establish a Nat Gas Vehicle and Infrastructure Development Program at the DoE;
Offer $4 billion in nat gas vehicle rebates and tax credits;
And allocate an additional $2.5 billion for grants for infrastructure and R&D.

Anticipated that here, here, and here.

The smart grid arrives

I may have hit this theme the hardest over the past few weeks.

It all boils down to the fact that the cheapest energy to produce is the energy you don't have to consume.

Economics heavily favor reducing demand over increasing supply. Thus, we're seeing a major shift toward these types of projects — and nice returns from the companies providing the technology.

And the evidence keeps piling up...

Just this week we learned that:

Needham & Company upgraded Comverge (NASDAQ: COMV) to Buy with a price target of $14 because it's “strategically well aligned with many utility preferences to take ownership of [smart grid] assets.”

Wells Fargo upgraded EnerNoc (NASDAQ: ENOC), which is also in the demand response business, to Outperform.

PowerSecure (NASDAQ: POWR) earned $10 million in new business to install distributed generation and smart grid systems at a number of retailers, hospitals, data centers, and municipal buildings. And then beat earnings estimates on Thursday.

Echelon (NASDAQ: ELON) beat earnings estimates.

EnerNOC (NASDAQ: ENOC) beat earnings estimates and raised sales guidance.

Esco (NYSE: ESE) jumped 20% when it was selected by Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE) as the vendor for a $400 million advanced meter project.

A bit of foreshadowing here, here, and here.

Major consolidation

I gave about two dozen examples here. But there have been even more announcements in the last week, some of which could be placed in other categories above.

GT Solar announced it was getting into the LED business when it acquired Crystal Systems, a maker of sapphire substrates that are used to make the lights.

Hanwha Chem said it was buying a 50% stake in Solarfun for $370 million, which is a premium to the current share price.

And I've been telling you the majors were looking to enter the cleantech business in a big way by highlighting recent acquisitions from Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), GE (NYSE: GE), and others.

But here's the best example of all that cleantech is the future and the big boys are looking to play ball...

The newest rumor on the Street, floated by Briefing.com, is that Siemens (NYSE: SI) is going to make a bid for First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR).

Chew on that.

And then chew on ways to profit from these happenings below.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Molycorp, Inc. Rare Earth IPO: Did this Rare Earth IPO Even Have a Chance?
Green Chip Editor Jeff Siegel discusses a new rare earth minerals play.

What Mainstream Media is Keeping to Themselves: A Secret Meeting Backed by $54mil in Gov't Cash
By now, most of us who keep up with the news are aware that Obama tripled the amount of loan guarantees for nuclear power to $54 billion in his budget request. But what isn't yet common knowledge is that there have already been numerous under-the-table nuclear energy agreements taking place for months. We'll tell you about the secret meeting that could make early investors 18,000% gains from a game-changing energy play.

A Breakthrough in Nuclear Waste Cleanup: Secretive Startup Offers Nuclear Waste Solution
Editor Nick Hodge discusses new nuclear solutions being developed by under-the-radar companies.

Why are Blue Chips So Cheap?: Quality Stocks are Still Cheap
Wealth Daily Analyst Adam Sharp points out the difference — and the importance — between value stocks and value traps.

The Bullish Case for Energy Storage: 4 Reasons to Invest in Energy Storage
Energy & Capital Editor Nick Hodge serves up the 4 biggest reasons to be bullish on energy storage.

A $51 Billion Oil Blunder: Why You Should Buy this $2 Oil Stock NOW
A world-changing Cold War blunder has left $51 billion worth of forgotten Soviet oil in the hands of a single $2/share company. On July 15th, the company confirmed it had struck oil in its first drill attempts. Watch our latest video footage to get all the information you need to get in on the oil play of a lifetime — and even bank 180 times your investment.

Where Soros and Pickens are Putting their Money: The 'Future Fuel' Company Everybody's Talking About
It costs $1.50 per gallon... is over 50% cheaper than diesel... and it's many times safer, cleaner, and more environmentally friendly... The latest report from Green Chip details how YOU could ride along with the likes of Soros and Pickens for an easy 1,925% gains on the $1.50-per-gallon transportation technology that's going to power the 21st century.

Why You Should Buy Gold Before China Does: How to Front-Run the Chinese, Legally - Part 2
Wealth Daily Publisher Brian Hicks brings readers Part 2 of his strategy for front-running the Chinese legally, this time by investing in gold.

Global Warming Predictions: Are Faulty Global Warming Predictions Dictating Government Policy?
Green Chip Editor Jeff Siegel discusses peak coal and a flaw in climate change predictions.

The Bullish Case for Energy Storage

I've said it before. Energy storage is the Holy Grail of the energy market.

Batteries are already a booming market, supplying juice for everything from power tools to smart phones to Kindles. And that trend will accelerate.

But we're also going to start using batteries — and other forms of energy storage — to power the grid and even our cars.

Here are the top four reasons you should be buying energy storage companies right now.

1. The presidential agenda

There's a reason Obama has made four highly publicized visits to battery factories since being elected. The Washington Post reported this week that the White House is making “an aggressive push to tell what one senior official called "the battery story" — the tale of a small piece of technology that could affect daily life and spur employment if properly nurtured.”

The stimulus awarded $2.4 billion to advanced batteries, and the administration has given an additional $2.6 billion in technology loans to Nissan, Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA), and Fisker to establish electric vehicle manufacturing facilities.

Which leads us to reason number two...

2. Electric Transportation

The top auto news this year has been all electric.

Any news about Chevy's Volt goes viral, including the announcement of its $41,000 price tag last week. (But you can get a $7,500 tax credit, thanks to reason #1.)

Nissan's Leaf and Ford's all-electric Focus are equally popular subject matter.

Two of the most highly anticipated recent IPOs were electric vehicle related. Ever heard of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) or A123 Systems (NASDAQ: AONE)?

Every city I've been to recently has electric or hybrid-electric buses. Government and utility fleets are converting to electric.

Even Buffett has bought a battery company.

3. China

The company Buffett bought was Chinese. That should come as no surprise.

Just today, the country announced it will invest $15 billion to subsidize its green car industry. And a report out last month from the Beijing office of the Freedonia Group said “demand for batteries in China is projected to increase 8.5 percent annually to $41.6 billion in 2013."

Another recent re port by Global Resources (NASDAQ: GSOL) surveyed dozens of Chinese battery suppliers an found that they produced 1.9 billion units last year. And 90% of respondents were increasing capital expenditures to keep up with demand they expect to “grow by more than 20% in the coming months.”

China's position as the largest battery manufacturer in the world is only going to strengthen.

4. Renewables & the Grid

I'll yield to a segment of a report from Piper Jaffray entitled Energy Storage: Game-Changing Component of the Future Grid:

Thanks to government mandates across the world, particularly in the U.S. and Europe, as well as continually declining costs for renewable energy, we will see a growing proportion of electricity generated from renewable sources over the next several years. In particular, we expect wind and solar to account for ~40%-50% of the total energy generated through renewables by 2020. Also, we expect renewable sources to account for ~20% of overall energy sources. We expect the annual installed wind capacity to be ~160-180GW in 2020 (from ~28GW in 2008) and solar to be ~20-25GW (from ~4GW in 2008). As electricity generation using renewable sources increases over the next several years, utilities will need to adopt energy storage solutions to help integrate these renewable sources into the grid — mainly due to the intermittent nature of most of the renewable sources, especially wind and solar.

We believe energy storage for stationary power will prove to be an important component of the future “Smart” Grid and will help utilities optimize power transmission and distribution. Also, an increasing proportion of energy generated from renewable sources such as solar and wind over the next several years will almost mandate the need for storage to assist in integrating these intermittent energy sources into the grid. Based on our proprietary checks with several utilities across the U.S. and Europe, we expect initial energy storage growth opportunities will be driven first by independent power producers (IPPs)/unregulated utilities followed by regulated utilities. We estimate spending of ~$600B+ on energy storage solutions over the next 10-12 years.

$600 billion...

With that kind of anticipated spending, you should seriously start thinking about allocating a portion of your portfolio to energy storage companies.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. In anticipation of this coming bull market, I've prepared a full investor briefing on the battery company that Buffett took a major stake in. It's making electric vehicles as well as batteries for the grid. The briefing details why Buffett's right-hand man calls it “one of the most interesting small companies in the world,” and why you should be buying shares right now.

A Breakthrough in Nuclear Waste Cleanup

Glass has been on the minds of many lately.

For a while yesterday, “Gorilla Glass” was the most popular search trend on Google, after Corning (NYSE: GLW) began touting the shelved 1962 invention.

Until now, there's been no market for the super-strong glass that's hard to break, dent, or scratch, and that's three times stronger than chemically strengthened soda-lime glass when half as thick.

Analysts say the product is about to undergo a multi-billion dollar bonanza as electronics companies buy tons of it to make frameless TVs thinner than a dime.

And that's not even the most exciting glass story hitting the wire...

Secretive startup turns nuclear waste into glass

Bill Gates has said we need “energy miracles.” And he's poured millions into developing a nuclear reactor that can run on depleted uranium for up to 100 years without fueling.

As Gates works on the reactor side, another company is taking on the waste.

Kurion, widely described as a secretive startup, has developed a way to store nuclear waste in glass or ceramics through a process called vitrification.

The technology could bring the United States into the 21^st century regarding nuclear waste. (We've been doing it the same way — with the same worries — for over half a century.)

And the company has street cred: CEO John Raymont spent 25 years at a nuclear waste management company that was acquired by EnergySolutions (NYSE: ES) in 2007, and VP of technology is Gaetan Bonhomme, formerly of glass behemoth Saint-Gobain.

The advisory board counts both Patrick Moore — founder of Greenpeace — and former Governor Christine Todd Whitman as members.

In a very real and profitable way, nuclear energy is entering a new era. If Obama's $58 billion in loan guarantees to build new plants didn't give it away, the presence of names like Gates, Whitman, and Moore should.

And while you can't get a piece of Gates' venture, TerraPower, or Kurion just yet, I've found an equally exciting opportunity that everyone can get a piece of — but that's being suppressed by major news outlets.

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Nuclear's next big name

Only a few companies are unequivocally associated with nuclear power: Areva and Westinghouse, to name two.

The next company that'll reach this status trades for just $0.65, and only a handful of well-informed investors are paying attention to it.

But the three things I'm about to tell you will soon give it a very high profile; a Bloom-Energy-on-60-Minutes type profile.

First, it's signed on with a well-known nuclear company to manufacture and distribute portable nuclear reactors. They can be taken almost anywhere on a flatbed truck to create large amounts of power in remote or grid isolated locations.

Second, it's signed an exclusive deal with a Chinese nuclear corporation to sell nuclear desalination reactors on a global scale, and has already received interest from dozens of countries.

Third, the company will soon be listed on a major U.S. exchange, like the NASDAQ or NYSE.

But the biggest catalyst of all — the one that could send this stock from penny oblivion to a household name — is the one that no news source is fully reporting.

And that's why I've penned a full investor briefing on the company.

I want you to learn about changes coming to the nuclear industry. I want you to learn about what the media isn't telling the public.

But most importantly, I want you to learn more about this company before the story is blown wide open.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

German Solar, U.S. Wind, and the Grecian Formula

Welcome to the Green Chip Review Weekend Edition — our insights from the week in everything alternative and cleantech, as well as links to our most-read Green Chip Review and sister publication articles.

With so much happening in the cleantech world this week, I thought I'd simplify the format with a simple cheers and jeers.

Here's my take on what went down during this busy week...

Cheers

To Morocco, for opening up the bidding process for the first phase of its $9 billion solar project. Pre-qualification bids are being invited to construct one or more solar thermal units with a capacity of 125 MW or more. When finished, the Ouarzazata complex will have a capacity of 500 MW, just part of the country's plan to get about 40% of its power from solar by 2020.

Will it be the company with the most experience in the region, Abengoa? The well-established Acciona? Or will it be a new kid on the block like eSolar, or Areva's newly purchased Ausra?

We'll have to wait and see.

The Metals Secret that JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays Don't Want You to Know...

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It's beaten the NASDAQ by 11,500%. And it's crushed the S&P 500 at a rate of 180 to 1!

In fact this little-known silver mining outfit has handed investors annual gains of 852% over the last nine years.

To learn more about the only silver investment you’ll need to make this year… Click here now.

Cheers

To Germany, which has successfully created the largest solar market in the world despite having the solar resources of Portland. In anticipation of cuts to its feed-in tariff, it added a record 3.4 GW of solar capacity in the first half — equivalent to three nuclear plants. Officials say they'll easily pass the full year record of 3.8 GW, and could install as many as 8 GW before the year is over.

Germany accounts for about 50% of the world's solar installations. And China makes about 50% of the world's solar products. That's why Renesola (NYSE: SOL), Solarfun (NASDAQ: SOLF), JA Solar (NASDAQ: JASO), and others have been on fire — up something like 70% for the year.

I told you so, told you so, told you so, told you so.

Jeers

To U.S. wind installations in the first half, which were down 71% compared to last year. New wind capacity fell behind new coal capacity for the first time in five years, and we've now fallen behind new wind development in Europe and China.

All this a result of failed action in Congress, which has failed to enact both a national renewable energy standard (RES) and a price on carbon. Even worse, if crucial Treasury grants aren't extended by the end of the year, the industry risks dying on the vine.

Cheers

To Greece, which said this week it will invest $15.59 billion in energy and environmental projects over five years to “boost its ailing economy and create new jobs.” The projects — ranging from solar and wind to new subways — are expected to attract another $41 billion in private investment and create 192,000 jobs.

Cheers

To the earnings results of American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC), Digi International (NASDAQ: DGII), Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI), Power-One (NASDAQ: PWER), Tenneco (NYSE: TEN), Veeco (NASDAQ: VECO), and Tetra Tech (NASDAQ: TTEK).

Jeers

To earnings from Comverge (NASDAQ: COMV), MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE: WFR), and First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR).

Ideas on how to profit from all these happenings below.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Korean Nuclear Reactors in the U.S.: No Mushroom Cloud, Just Exploding Profits
Green Chip Editor Nick Hodge discusses Korea's APR-1400 nuclear reactor and one tiny company's plan to import it.

Herpes, The Jersey Shore, and Trading Secrets 11-20: Snooki Rings the NYSE Bell
Wealth Daily Editor Christian DeHaemer connects the Jersey Shore with herpes and, as promised, brings readers #11-20 of his trading rules.

Reading the News isn't the Same as Getting the Story: What Fox News Didn't Tell You
Fox News published a story about the re-zoning of land in Idaho for nuclear reactors to be built — how many jobs will be created, when construction could begin, and how much land will be required, even the name of the company that's the major player in all of this. But what they didn't tell you could make you more than $32k in the coming months.

Energy Bill Opportunities: How to Profit from Cowards and Thieves
Green Chip's Jeff Siegel discusses opportunities stemming from the latest energy bill.

Apple Hits Peak Profitability: Little Upside Left in AAPL
Wealth Daily Analyst Adam Sharp explores the possibility that Apple has reached peak profitability, with higher costs and competition looming.

Energy Efficiency Stocks: Why a New Law Guarantees this Outfit Will Make you Big Money
A little firm from Ohio is about to save homeowners, businesses, and state departments billions of dollars — every single year! This firm's technology is so cutting-edge, so universally useful that Forbes predicts it "… has the capability to radically alter the entire energy landscape.” And the best part? A new government law guarantees you make profits in energy efficiency stocks.

The End of the Bush Tax Cuts: The Hammer is About to Fall
Wealth Daily Editor Steve Christ examines the end of the Bush tax cuts and explains why it won't be painless.

Green Options - Twice the Money in Half the Time: A Unique Investment Vehicle for Green Investments
Editor Nick Hodge discusses a lucrative yet often misunderstood way to invest in everything green: green options trading.

Canada Puts the Kibosh on Oil and Coal: BC Parliament Cracks Down on Fossil Fuels
The biggest abuse of government power since before the American Revolution is going on just over the border… but there is a profit opportunity here as British Columbia cracks down on oil and coal, and smart investors can play this conspiracy story for gains of over 170%.

Clean Energy Mergers & Acquisitions: When Cleantech Came of Age
Green Chip Editor Nick Hodge discusses cleantech mergers and acquisitions in 2010 and lists a ton of clean energy stock tickers.

Green Options: Twice the Money in Half the Time

Green stocks are great.

But unless you're a beginning investor, there are much more efficient ways to invest your money.

While we can pick the cutting-edge companies that bring investors the best returns in the industry, even we can’t control the stock market.

But that doesn’t mean you have to sit back and let the market slap you around... You see, there’s a way to play the green industry that’s safer and more profitable than just trading regular old stocks.

I’m talking about that often talked about and misunderstood world of options trading.

The beauty of options lies in their flexibility — because you’re selling a derivative and not the actual stock, you can make money in both bull and bear markets, when stocks are both booming and busting.

My colleague and options expert Ian Cooper has done just that.

He’s turned all sorts of green stocks into big gains.

Like 113% on a JA Solar run and another 167% on oil spill cleaner Thermo Fisher.

And when the stocks of Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI), Energy Conversion Devices (NASDAQ: ENER), and First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) took a dive, Ian managed to pull in 32%, 38%, and 96% gains.

And I’m not talking long-term gains either… These options were held for an average of eight days before Ian closed them out.

In fact Ian’s put together an options trading guide that will help you learn the ins and outs of how to trade these little known investment strategies…

Not just green stocks — but everything from commodities to the housing market and even comic book options.

Adding green option plays to your portfolio is an excellent way to maximize your gains and minimize your losses, no matter what the rest of the market is doing.

I’ve attached the link to Ian’s guide here.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

338% in 8 Days, 141% in 7 Days, 221% in 9 Days...

Those are actual gains made by readers of Ian Cooper's options trading services.

His strategy has proven to be so popular, that he's giving you a chance to learn all about trading options -- ABSOLUTELY FREE.

He's put together a how-to guide that documents the lucrative and misunderstood world of options, and it can be yours for free just by clicking here.

Clean Energy Mergers & Acquisitions

The days of discussing cleantech viability are over.

At this point, we need to start looking at how the industry will mature and grow. The industry is moving so quickly that if we don't start now, we risk getting behind the curve.

And no one makes money behind the curve.

As cleantech costs continue to fall, capacities expand, and the grid gets smarter, an interesting future is emerging — an interesting energy future, yes... but an interesting cleantech business future as well.

Surest Way to Profit from the Natural Gas Surge

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Already, it's paid investors like you over 101% since last August.

But after you see what these two energy geniuses have up their sleeves, you'll understand why this little gem could wind up handing you more than ten times your money!

Click here to find out more.

Buying a seat at the table

Did you really think the industrial conglomerates of this world were going to stand by and let clean business billions pass them by?

Companies like that — the GEs (NYSE: GE), the Siemens (NYSE: SI), the Ciscos (NASDAQ: CSCO), the Dows (NYSE: DOW), the Honeywells (NYSE: HON), the big utilities — haven't gotten where they are by resting on their laurels.

They see how profitable the cleantech future is. And you can be sure they'll get their piece.

The seeds of their plans were planted long ago.

GE launched Ecomagination in 2005. IBM has spent millions over the past few years telling us they're at the forefront of building smart cities.

That was the in-house stage. As new technologies are developed and new, successful companies emerge, we're about to see the acquisition stage.

And it won't be just big fish swallowing little fish.

With financing and credit still extremely tight, the imminent commoditization of solar, and the maturation of the industry in general, the number of strategic mergers is also on the rise.

If you can't beat 'em...

Just this year...

Cisco made an undisclosed equity investment in Grid Net, a company seeking to build broadband networks to connect utilities and their customers. GE and Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) have also invested.

Siemens took a 49% stake in A2SEA, an offshore wind farm developer, worth $142.5 million. It also took a 17% stake in Archimede Solar, which makes solar thermal receivers that use molten salt as the transfer fluid.

Honeywell bought demand response company Akuacom in order to compete with the likes of Comverge (NASDAQ: COMV) and EnerNoc (NASDAQ: ENOC). And it furthered its smart grid reach by buying E-Mon, a smart energy submeter provider, from Branford Castle.

(When I signed up for BGE's Peak Rewards program, I was issued a Honeywell-branded cycling switch for my A/C.)

Dow Chemical made an equity investment in CIGS solar manufacturer Nuvosun.

This list of blue chips buying green chips has countless entries, but there's only one main point: They see the future and, if they can't get a piece of it on their own, they'll buy it.

Strength in numbers

Even though blue chip conglomerates are in the middle of a green feeding frenzy, some of the biggest deals are coming from companies you've probably never heard of.

In an $8.5 billion deal, FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) merged with Allegheny Power to create an energy company with 2.2 GW of renewable energy capacity and 20,000 miles of high voltage transmission.

Petroleo Brasileiro (NYSE: PBR) paid $920.8 million for 45.7% of Acucar Guarani to expand its ethanol business. (Didn't some other big oil company just make an ethanol purchase?)

And ABB (NYSE: ABB) created a single unit for energy management when it paid more than $1 billion for Ventyx.

But those are just the near-billion dollar deals that have gone down this year...

So far, there have been nearly 200 M&A deals in 2010 valued at over $15 billion.

Wind's seen 41 deals totaling $9.8 billion, with lots of action from big European utilities and Asian firms. Gamesa (MCE: GAM), Enel, EDP, Schneider, Dong, and Iberdrola Renovables (MCE: IBR) all made purchases.

In the solar industry, there have been 48 deals with a disclosed value of $1.62 billion. Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ: AEIS) bought PV Powered. First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) bought NextLight. MEMC (NYSE: WFR) bought Solaicx. China Sungergy (NASDAQ: CSUN) bought two units of the China Electric Equipment Group. SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWRA) bought SunRay. GCL-Poly (HK: 3800) bought Konca Solar Cell. Brush Engineered (NYSE: BW) bough Academy.

And that's without mentioning the Siemens and Dow deals from above...

And do you remember when Areva — the nuclear giant Areva — bought the much-hyped Ausra?

The most exciting sector for M&A — because it's currently the most lucrative — has been energy storage, efficiency, infrastructure, and communication, otherwise known as the smart grid, with 53 deals amounting to almost $2 billion.

And what's most exciting is who's trying to play the smart grid game. You've got the Honeywell and ABB deals from above. But NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) — this is a utility, people — also joined the fray when it bought HVAC efficiency specialist Northwind Phoenix.

Energy magnate Dominion Resources (NYSE: D) completely validated the smart grid when it took a stake in Power Tagging Technologies. Dominion said its new friend has “the technology that will play a key role in transforming infrastructure into a truly smart grid.”

This is where we are.

On the one hand, coal-dependent utilities, Fortune 500 tech firms, global industrial powerhouses, and stalwart chemical companies are all embracing the cleantech future; staking their financial future on it, in fact.

And on the other hand, we have sector-specific consolidation; strategic mergers aimed at improving technology and reducing costs to fuel the next stage of growth.

The alternative future isn't alternative at all. It hasn't been for a while now.

Peabody's (NYSE: BTU) taking part, for crying out loud. One of the world's largest coal companies just paid $15 million for Calera, a company that turns carbon dioxide into green building products.

After you let the hypocrisy of that sink in, take a moment to think about what this massive switch means for your energy portfolio.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. And then take a moment to read this prospectus on a tiny energy firm with several things going for it. It's contracted with the Chinese to sell nuclear powered desalination units and has sales interests from dozens of parched countries. But more importantly, it's on the verge of a very lucrative deal with the Koreans to import a new type of reactor. Is it a buyout candidate? Maybe. But the shares are headed higher either way.

Korean Nuclear Reactors in the U.S.

It's the stuff you never hear about that makes the most money. Or at least the stuff you don't hear about until it's too late.

Big acquisitions. Clandestine loopholes in new legislation. Surprise upside earnings.

Here's an investment story that's way ahead of the curve for a change. The story actually begins in the U.S., but we'll pick it up with recent news from Korea and work backwards.

How To Make Money From Every Car Produced

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The $20 billion affirmation

South Korea has been perfecting a new type of nuclear reactor for the past 10 years.

The reactor, called the Advanced Power Reactor-1400 (APR-1400), has already gained international recognition, with Nuclear Street reporting it “includes safety features not found in conventional reactors,” like “a missile shield to defend against both an internal and external missile attack... seismic restraints and improved materials that would prevent damage to the reactor in the event of an earthquake.”

Right now, four of these reactors are under construction in Korea, with the first scheduled to come online next fall.

Here's how far ahead this reactor is...

Last year, the United Arab Emirates awarded a $20 billion contract to a Korean consortium to build four reactors. While that's impressive, it's even more so when you know Korea beat out nuclear stalwarts like Areva (Paris: CEI), Total (NYSE: TOT), GE (NYSE: GE), and Hitachi (NYSE: HIT) to get that deal.

That's how good this reactor is.

It's led the Korea Herald to declare “The nuclear power industry is Korea’s new growth engine, targeting the rising market for nuclear reactor construction worldwide. Local players aim to construct about 80 nuclear reactors by 2030 in global markets.”

Keep that in mind as we head back to the States.

The writing on the wall

Here in the U.S. — in Idaho, to be exact — a small company has been cutting through red tape for years in order to build the first investor-owned utility in decades.

It's already gained community support and, earlier this year, began to make rapid progress in the regulatory realm.

After numerous rallies, hearings, closed-door meetings, and committee sessions, the company now has two sites approved for construction of a nuclear reactor.

I'm sure you can guess which reactor it's trying to use...

You can bet this company is well aware of Korea's new world-leading reactor. And early this year, I began to hear rumors that the CEO was making frequent trips to meet with Korean higher-ups.

This is a story hardly anyone else is reporting. And even when I see it in the news, they never cover the entire story.

They just don't get it.

It's the other story, stupid

Whenever I see this story mentioned, the focus is always the same as any other nuclear story.

They talk about the company's plan, where the nukes are going to be built, and then focus on the standard nuclear issues: NIMBYism, potential catastrophes, proliferation, and other what-ifs.

What they're missing is the pure profit potential at hand here.

The company about to import these reactors is trading for less than $1.00. That's the real news here.

Because any deal they sign to use Korea's reactor will likely come with exclusive North American distribution rights.

And that means this tiny company could get a cut of every imported reactor.

Remember that line from above: 80 nuclear reactors by 2030 in global markets.

And also remember that the UAE paid $20 billion for four of them.

Those are the kinds of numbers we're dealing with here. And again, no one else seems to get it.

That's why I've authored this detailed prospectus to spread the word.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

No Energy Bill in 2010

Welcome to the Green Chip Stocks Weekend Edition — our insights from the week in everything alternative and cleantech, as well as links to our most-read Green Chip Stocks and sister publication articles.

We don't need an energy bill to profit.

There. I said it.

While it certainly would be helpful, considering the bill being debated in Congress calls for both a cap on carbon and a 15% renewable energy standard, we've simply reached a point where our investments can no longer be held hostage by delayed legislation.

Complaining about it doesn't make money.

Spreading the green gospel and participating in petty political posturing doesn't make money.

Only making smart investment decisions based on market and legislative conditions makes money.

We Just Finished Shooting this Controversial Video...

It details a little-known energy company that's already up 600%.

And it's poised to shoot off for another +1,000% gains.

If you haven't seen this video, I'd suggest watching it right away.

The bill's been killed

I've conveyed to you several times that I didn't think an energy bill would be passed this year.

And my concerns were proven correct this week when, as the New York Times reported, “Senate Democrats abandoned their summer efforts to pass a broad energy and climate bill, essentially declaring it dead for the year.”

Though it's a far-reaching and complex bill, we're basically talking about a failure to do two things:

Put limits on greenhouse emissions, and
Establish a national renewable energy standard

Now let's be clear...

This is a blow to the renewable energy industry.

Without a limit or price on emissions, utilities have no reason to reduce them and financiers find it difficult to lend to clean energy projects.

Same goes for the RES — without a mandate on the amount of electricity to be derived from renewable resources, utilities, financiers, and developers will be even slower to act.

As it stands, if a utility needs to build a new power plant, they'll choose natural gas every time. And I can't blame them.

But ranting about this injustice, real or perceived, doesn't pay the mortgage.

If that's what you want to do or that's what you're after, stop right now. Close this window and mouse over to some non-profit environmentalist website.

We're here to make money no matter the legislative hand we're dealt.

Still profits in the cards...

No energy bill means a rough road ahead for developing technologies still dependent on government support.

If the Treasury Grant Program is allowed to expire at the end of the year "the level of capital that is available to finance renewable energy is anticipated to decline by more than 50%," according to the American Council on Renewable Energy.

Wind and rooftop solar would be hit the hardest.

And those are the two best-known cleantech sectors, so you'll have to be well-versed in the industry to succeed.

Smart grid looks good because efficiency is the cheapest energy there is. I've profiled why here, here and here..

Natural gas is also looking good — not just for electricity, but for transportation. And tax credits for its use could sneak through Congress in legislation being pushed in response to the BP disaster.

You'll want to read this report before that happens.

Finally, you'll also want to take a look at Chinese solar companies ahead of earnings in August.

You can find that article, and plenty of others, in the rest of this week's Green Chip coverage below.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Natural Capital Investing: Are We Liquidating $4.5 Trillion In Natural Capital Every Year?
Contributing editor Sam Hopkins reviews a new platform that will be used to address the challenge of measuring and monetizing the most uncommon natural resources.

Canada Puts the Kibosh on Oil and Coal: BC Parliament Cracks Down on Fossil Fuels
The biggest abuse of government power since before the American Revolution is going on just over the border… but there is a profit opportunity here as British Columbia cracks down on oil and coal. Read the latest report from Green Chip Stocks to find out how you can turn this conspiracy into gains of over 170%.

Electric Vehicle Investing Opportunities: What this New Electric Car Bill Means for You
Green Chip Editor Jeff Siegel discusses a new electric car bill that aims to speed up the integration of electric vehicles.

Approaching Solar Earnings Season: Big Banks Bullish on Solar Stocks
Green Chip Editor Nick Hodge talks about big banks warming up to the solar sector and how you can turn a quick profit as earnings season approaches.

Ecosystem Investing: A $2 Trillion Discovery that May Piss You Off
Editor Jeff Siegel reviews the annual liquidation of $2 trillion, and how it affects the true value of conventional fossil fuel-based energy.

Smart Grid Reaching Critical Mass: Smart Grid Saves Energy, Makes Money
Energy & Capital's Nick Hodge discusses the coming-of-age of the smart grid via a Kohl's case study.

$30 Thousand Details: The Missing Piece of this Nuclear Outfit’s Puzzle
Fox News covered the story of this up-and-coming nuclear outfit back in March… but the folks at Fox left out some very important details. And the missing piece of this puzzle could bank you $36,950 by July 20^th next year. Read our latest report to find out how.

Obesity Drug Stocks: The Fat of the Land
Wealth Daily Editor Ian Cooper examines how one weight-loss drug could fatten your wallet in the next 60 days.

Tiny Nuclear Company Leads American Resurgence: The Nuclear Energy Story Fox News Isn't Telling You
Energy and Capital Editor Nick Hodge shares with readers details on a little-known nuclear company that's set to explode on certain hidden news...

China Leads U.S. in High Speed Rail: Faster Than a Speeding Panda
Green Chip Stocks Editor Jeff Siegel comments on China's latest green innovation and why the U.S. needs to catch up.

Tiny Nuclear Company Leads American Resurgence

I told you it would happen again, and it did.

I’ve been pounding the table about this tiny nuclear company for awhile... And for the third time since the beginning of the year, its shares have doubled.

And it’s no accident... Lightning just doesn’t strike in the same place three times.

The reason for this company’s huge run is because they’re one of the most exciting energy companies leading the charge in the current American nuclear renaissance.

They may be small (and undervalued), but they continue to take part in some of the most lucrative deals in the world of alternative energy.

Just this past May, according to MarketWatch, they "signed a deal with CNNC in China that resulted in the creation of Green World Water, which is now the only company selling a large-scale nuclear desalination reactor."

And in June, the same report states they "signed a memorandum of understanding with Hyperion Power Generation… to help license, build and sell their nuclear reactors on a world-wide basis."

But perhaps most exciting — and what I believe will hand investors big money — is the nuclear power plant these guys plan to build.

They’ve already been through countless board meetings, voting procedures, and legislation changes...

Now, they’re in the final phase of a rezoning process in Idaho that will allow them to build their plant with few further obstacles.

According to Forbes:

The zoning process should be finished in the coming months, and once the reactor is completed, it is expected to create thousands of jobs while generating between $3 billion and $5 billion annually.

But aside from the monetary impact and employment opportunities this plant will provide, there's an underground, more clandestine reason this company's so intriguing.

The thing is, you can’t just find this particular information any old place.

I came across a recent Fox News article that reported all kinds of facts on this company. The piece discussed everything from when construction could begin to how much land will be required.

But the guys at Fox conveniently left out the most important piece of the story…

You see, for the past several months, this small nuclear company has been engaged in secret talks with the Korean government. It just so happens, the Koreans are on the cutting edge of nuclear reactor design...

And the pending deal that this company has with the Koreans could turn into one of the biggest windfalls in energy history — both for the tiny, nuclear company I’ve been telling you about as well as for you.

The proof is already in the pudding.

104% gains in January, 100% gains in May — and another 136% as I write this.

But that’s not even close to what I see investors pulling in once the information that Fox News didn’t report hits the mainstream...

I urge you to check out the full details in my exclusive report…

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Smart Grid Reaching Critical Mass

If going green is the expensive energy option, why has Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) saved $50 million by converting 500 of its stores to Energy Star buildings?

It's because while clean energy was once the expensive energy, it gets cheaper and cheaper every day. So every day you wait to invest in the sector means profits left on the table.

In Kohl's quest to green its operations, it's disproved almost every clean energy myth out there.

It's the second-largest purchaser of renewable energy in the country, using it for 100% of its electricity needs. And it's saving money.

It's the largest retail host of solar power on the continent with 88 installations. And it's saving money.

It's built 45 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified green buildings, and has committed to building all new stores this way. And it's saving money.

It's retrofitted all stores with building automation systems that control interior and exterior lighting, and has replaced all 75 watt incandescents with 24 watt metal halide bulbs. And it's saving money.

If clean options are so expensive and job-killing and GDP-damning and economy-crushing... Why has a retail chain with a $14 billion market cap that has to answer to shareholders thoroughly embraced it?

Because as it turns out, it's not expensive. It actually reduces operating costs and creates an economic edge over the competition.

And it can create and economic edge for you as well.

They save it; you make it

While companies and countries across the globe save billions by reducing energy costs, you can profit by investing in the companies providing the energy-saving solutions.

Let's just take a look at the fourth step in Kohl's plan: efficiency.

By implementing building control systems and retrofitting all its lights, Kohl's has adopted the smart grid.

And they aren't alone in their endeavor...

Already a dozen and a half U.S. utilities have ushered in the smart grid, installing smart meters in 16 million households.

South Korea will invest $24 billion over the next 20 years to fully adopt the smart grid by 2030. LG and Hyundai are already lining up deals.

China has a three-step plan to adopt by 2020, to be carried out by the State Grid Corporation. The company has said it will invest $37 billion this year to build a nationwide smart grid network. It's also in talks with Duke (NYSE: DUK) to upgrade transmission lines here in the States.

China plans to spend $600 billion on the smart grid in the next decade.

The U.S. committed $4.5 billion to the space in the stimulus. And its impact is already being felt.

Demand response. Building automation. Smart appliances. Lighting. Efficient transmission.

Hundreds of billions are being poured into these technologies to save both energy and money.

Here are some ideas on how to profit from the rollout.

Smart grid investment themes

You can't talk about smart grid investment without talking about smart meters.

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) says contracts for 79 million smart meters have already been announced, and 140 million will be installed by 2020.

The best play here is Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI), which already has significant market share thanks to contracts with Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric, CenterPoint (NYSE: CNP), and others.

You can get exposure from GE (NYSE: GE), Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), Siemens (NYSE: SI), and Honeywell (NYSE: HON), but it's only a fraction of their business.

(You should know that GE just launched a $200 million fund to foster smart grid technology and its CEO was quoted last week saying “the market is still in its infancy.”)

Demand response also deserves investment attention. This is when a company gets paid to reduce a community's electricity usage by the utility.

So instead of adding megawatts of production with solar, wind, coal, or nat gas, the utility pays a company to reduce demand by the same amount.

EnerNOC (NASDAQ: ENOC) and Comverge (NASDAQ: COMV) and the leaders here, and are guaranteed to see increased business in the future.

There are also straight-up efficiency plays.

Echelon (NASDAQ: ELON) provides turnkey systems that can make entire neighborhoods (or parts of them, like street lights) more efficient by employing various monitoring and automating products.

Companies like Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) are making smart appliances capable of communicating wirelessly with the homeowner and the utility via a smart meter. Whirlpool has received $20 million in stimulus funds to do this, just beat earnings estimates last week, and is up 60% in the past year.

And lighting companies like Cree (NASDAQ: CREE) and Veeco (NASDAQ: VECO) — each of which have more than doubled in the past year — are making smart investors rich as they provide efficient lights to customers like Kohl's. Though I think this lighting company will deliver even better returns.

But the real Holy Grail of the smart grid is energy storage. It's the glue that makes everything stick.

Storage makes the sun shine at night; it makes the wind blow when it isn't.

And it can make the grid much smarter and efficient by not having to deal with intermittent sources of renewable energy.

We're on the verge of some serious storage breakthroughs with molten salt, flywheels, magnets, and ultracapacitors.

But right now the profits are in batteries — specifically, lithium batteries.

A new lithium ETF is scheduled to launch this week, but I've found a much better way to play the boom...

It's a small Chinese outfit that is using its batteries not only for smart grid applications, but to build the fastest growing car company in the world.

Buffett is already in, and you can read about how to stake your early claim here.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Billionaires' Game-changing Fossil Fuel Gamble

Approaching Solar Earnings Season

Three weeks ago, I wrote to you about Goldman's upgrading of the solar sector.

I concluded by saying that my top pick was the same as Goldman's: JA Solar (NASDAQ: JASO). It was trading for $4.64 that day.

Today?

If you'd have taken my advice, you could be sitting on a 33% gain in the same time the Dow dropped another 5%:

But not to worry, solar stocks are going to deliver plenty more returns this year... if you know how to play them.

Banking on solar

To recap, here are the bullish points Goldman offered about the solar sector:

benefits from large-scale projects ultimately overwhelming near-term challenges and accelerating the transition from subsidized markets towards parity
widespread grid parity as early as 2012
higher-than-expected demand and price declines will deliver stable returns even without subsidies

I noted that companies have to reduce costs, foster customer relationships, and enter new markets as solar becomes increasingly commoditized.

And last week, another bank validated my assertions.

Revealed: My Next 112% Alternative Energy Blockbuster...

The alternative energy industry is the hottest sector in the market making a handful of investors quite a bit of extra income. And we've just uncovered a new wind development company that's using a little-known California law to lock in a $600 million contract.

The stock is an easy double within 6 months! Details here.

According to research put out by Jefferies analyst Jesses Pichel, “brand positioning and cost structure will determine solar company profits and valuation in 2011.”

But that was only part of what the bank had to say...

It also noted that 2010 industry volumes should reach 12.9 GW — up about 80% from last year, with 100%-plus growth in Germany and 47% growth in the rest of the world.

And Reuters reported yesterday that solar is in for healthy second quarter earnings reports, adding that “several companies including First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) have said they sold out all their production for 2010.”

But they won't all be winners...

Even though Jeffries placed buy ratings on Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL), Yingli Green (NYSE: YGE), and JA Solar (NASDAQL: JASO), it noted that solar will be a stock pickers' game in late 2010 and 2011.

It advised waiting for “a better entry point” even on top picks while downgrading both SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWRA) and MEMC (NYSE: WFR).

A better entry point

As you can see in the chart above, solar stocks have been trending higher for the past month — high enough that I wouldn't risk buying just yet.

Germany, Italy, Spain, and a few other European solar markets are in the midst of changes to solar subsidy schemes. Jefferies notes that demand for solar is high this year as companies race to complete projects before subsidies expire.

The demand case for 2011 isn't as clear.

Nonetheless, the frenzy of solar buying this year is going to make for some surprise earnings reports to the upside.

Solar earnings season kicks off in earnest the first week of August.

You'll want to be buying the dips of solid solar companies in anticipation of good earnings.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. My readers love solar stocks as much as I do. Probably because we've closed 11 of them for double-digit profits since last July. Right now, we're up more than 75% on JA Solar (having bought it before the banks liked it), and we'll likely take profits on the coming earnings pop.

We're also going to be in place to profit from the other solar companies about to report second quarter numbers. But earnings season starts in a few weeks, so you'll want to join the thousands of other investors lined up for a solar windfall by then.

Global Energy Transition Underway

When discussing energy, most people focus only on the here and now.

And I have to hand it to them. That's a great way to discount renewables.

But it's also a great way to miss out on what's shaping up to be the biggest investment theme of the first half of this century.

You know the arguments I'm talking about...

"Wind and solar only account for a fraction of energy production, and will never amount to anything... "

"Renewables are way too expensive compared to coal and natural gas... "

"Switching to renewables will hurt our economy, raise utility bills, and cost American jobs... "

Or any of the other talking points you hear that are rarely backed up with any real data.

Wait Just Two Weeks... and You Could Miss Out on These 11,000% Gains

Things move fast in the world of energy... and that includes the profits.

The biggest paydays only come to those who put their chips in at the exact right moment, and that's why I'm writing to you today.

As nuclear energy asserts itself in the United States, this microcap company could easily pay out 11,000% gains — or more — to those who time this opportunity correctly.

I actually love people that believe that kind of stuff.

Not only will it be fun to watch them eat crow in a few years; it's also good to know that they'll be missing out on a monumental shift in energy wealth.

They can spout off today about the fallacy of global warming, not wanting to trade in their uber-consumerism for a green lifestyle, and how switching to cleantech would put an unecessary burden on the middle class — all classic unfounded naysayer rhetoric — while we focus on making money from trends they're just too narrow-minded to see.

So pay attention. Here are five green swans they're not considering.

Five green swans

1. The developing world

1.6 billion people still lack basic access to electricity. That's more than five times the U.S. population and represents about a quarter of the global population.

Countries where those people are located don't have a grid. They don't have coal plants. And they likely never will.

As I've detailed here, these countries are developing green from the start.

By 2025 there will be about two dozen cities with populations over 10 million. The U.S. will only have two of them. Most of the rest are being built now — and they're being built green.

Of the $95 billion expected to be invested in cleantech outside the United States and Europe this year, $40 billion will go to developing countries, not including China.

2. Technology development

We've only dipped our toes in the clean technology pool.

The entire sector is undergoing a rapid technological transformation. Fossil fuels have had more than a century to innovate, but the focus has only shifted to cleantech in the past decade or so.

Cleantech is now one of the top three sectors getting venture capital, along with Internet technology and health care.

And the government has created ARPA-E — energy's equivalent of DARPA, which is credited with inventing the Internet.

It's busy developing, among other things, next-generation batteries for electric cars, megawatt-scale storage systems for wind and hydro, soft-magnetics and chips that can reduce the power consumption of electronics, and even microorganisms that harness chemical and electrical energy to convert carbon dioxide into fuels.

It even helped pioneer the new light bulbs we've been telling you about.

If you think there can't be rapid transition in an industry so big, I have two words for you: Smith Corona.

3. Cost

This isn't two years ago. Cost is quickly fading as an argument against clean energy.

Here's where we stand now:

Hydro, geothermal, landfill gas, biomass, and wind are already at or well below current grid prices for coal.

Also, note where efficiency stands. That's a major catalyst for the smart grid.

Solar will be the next technology to reach parity, with installed costs of $0.12/kWh expected by most companies and analysts by 2012.

So the cost argument is just about out the window.

4. Utilities

These fiscally conservative, slow-to-change, highly-regulated giants are quickly starting to warm up to cleantech after a long and calculated wait time.

These guys are penny pinchers, so there's no way they were going to adopt clean energy until it was competitive...

But guess what? The time has come.

Utilities used to have to be forced to purchase clean energy through laws. Now they are seeking it out — and in some cases, not signing power purchase agreements with developers, but rather taking ownership of the assets themselves.

This is especially true of solar, which is about to reach parity, and avoids many challenges associated with transmission, interconnection, and permitting. And also of the smart grid, for which 25% of U.S. utilities have already made a firm commitment.

When the utilities like it, you know it's a viable product.

5. China

China's 2009 cleantech investment: $33.8 billion.

The U.S.? Just $17.9 billion.

China now has three of the top 10 wind companies in the world, and has become the largest domestic wind market in the world after passing the U.S. last year.

They have six of the top ten solar companies, and they produce more than 50% of the world's solar energy products.

And they're just getting started.

Bottom line

In a recent report, the International Energy Agency said that “a revolution in energy technology is occurring, spearheaded by substantial increases in renewables generation, particularly wind and solar power.”

And even with all the progress, these are only the “first small, fragmented steps on a long journey towards transforming the way we supply and use energy.”

It has concluded that renewables could provide 50% of the world's power by mid-century.

Put your money in cleantech. Put your money in the future.

Some more ideas on how to do that below.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

Green Parking Lots: Will these Two Companies Green Your Parking Lot and Fatten Your Wallet?
Green Chip Editor Jeff Siegel discusses two publicly-traded companies greening up the nation's parking lots and garages.

Stimulus Funds Array of Smart Grid Technologies: The Smart Grid Deconstructed
Editor Nick Hodge discusses smart grid stimulus projects, and why we're in the early stages of a complete grid overhaul.

Peter Lynch's Stock Market Investment Advice: Finding the Elusive 10-Bagger
Wealth Daily's Steve Christ breaks down Peter Lynch's best investment advice on the trail of a 10-bagger.

Don't Sell Your Junior Gold Stocks Just Yet: Why You Can Expect Long-term Rewards Despite Short-term Hiccups
Editor Greg McCoach discusses why selling shares of junior gold stocks might not be the best idea right now, despite a downturn in the market.

Investing in Green Stocks: 7 Green Stocks to Buy on the Next Market Slide
Green Chip's Jeff Siegel reveals his top seven green stocks to buy the next time the market slides.

The Ten Commandments of Trading: Ten Rules for Profitable Trading
Wealth Daily Editor Christian DeHaemer tells readers about the ten rules of trading and explains why his favorite stock of the year is up 441%.

A $297Billion-a-Year Market: Smart Profits from the Smart Grid
As America's electric infrastructure is on the verge of collapse, there are literally billions of dollars out there for those who are developing and investing in Smart Grid technology right now. This new report from Green Chip reveals the pure profit plays you need to know about to get in on what GE is calling "the biggest investment of the next 50 years."

Energy Efficiency Stocks: Out with the Old, In with the New, and Straight to the Bank
Forbes recently said of this company "it … has the capability to radically alter the entire energy landscape.” A little-known engineering firm in Ohio is changing the energy efficiency sector in a big way, and this new report gives investors an inside look at what they need to know to get in before they can no longer afford this outfit's now $1.20 share price.

A Beginner's Guide to Fundamental Analysis: A Heavyweight's Handbook to True Wealth
Editor Steve Christ takes a look at fundamental analysis and explains how the heavyweights have used it earn a fortune.

Stimulus Funds Array of Smart Grid Technologies

My heart sank three weeks ago when I read that Maryland's Public Service Commission (PSC) rejected the state utility's proposal to adopt the smart grid.

Baltimore Gas & Electric — a unit of Constellation Energy (NYSE: CEG) — submitted an $835 million plan to install 1.36 million smart electric meters and over 700,000 advanced gas meters in the state.

At stake was a $200 million federal stimulus grant, the adoption of the smart grid in my home state, and a near-$1 billion kick-off party to the kind of smart grid investment about to sweep the nation and world.

But the PSC said two points in the plan — mandatory real-time pricing and a surcharge to reduce some of the cost — were asking ratepayers “to take significant financial and technological risks and adapt to categorical changes in rate designs, all in exchange for savings that are largely indirect, highly contingent, and a long way off.”

BGE said the project “appears dead.” The DoE said the grant program was oversubscribed anyway, and they'd be glad to give the $200 million to another state.

But $200 million is a lot of coin for a state to let slip away, especially when dealing with federal funds that would put it on the forefront of grid modernization.

Jr. Mining Outfit Unlocks $550 Billion Deposit

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As official mining operations begin, investors loading up right now could easily triple their money over the coming months...

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The biggest piece of pie

$200 million is the absolute maximum a state can be awarded from the stimulus for smart grid development.

And even though $4.5 billion has been allocated for the sector, only six projects were awarded the full amount.

Here are the others:

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE: CNP), Houston, TX
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), Charlotte, NC
NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) (formally Florida Power& Light, note the implication of the new name), Miami, FL
Progress Energy (NYSE: PGN), Raleigh, NC
PECO (an Exelon (NYSE: EXC) company), Philadelphia, PA

Point is, this was a monumental opportunity, and BGE wasn't going to have it taken away from them.

So this week, a new plan was submitted to the PSC, fixing the sticking points from the previous version.

Instead of adding a surcharge to cover all costs not paid by the grant, the new plan calls for it to cover just 25% of the cost with the rest offset by rate-increases over time. And real-time pricing will be optional rather than mandatory.

The bottom line here, before we get into how this will make us all money, is that the project is expected to cost $835 million.

But the 15-year return would be $2.6 billion.

The average annual expense works out to only $3.60 per customer, with a return of nearly $100 per customer per year.

Unless you hate saving money and energy, this project is a no-brainer.

So is investing in the smart grid

Compared to solar, wind, and geothermal, deploying smart grid technology has much lower capital costs. That makes smart grid projects more attractive not only to utilities and consumers, but to governments and lenders as well.

The Maryland project described above would pay for itself three times over in the next 15 years.

And according to the Energy Information Administration, an upfront $520 billion smart grid investment in the United States would translate to $1.2 trillion in gross energy savings by 2020.

Investing in the smart grid now means utilities — and by default, you — won't have to spend even more money building new power plants later.

That's why utilities (even southern-based, coal country utilities) are quickly adopting the smart grid and other efficiency practices. And it's why they acted even faster to secure stimulus funds to help them do it.

How can we profit? Let me count the ways...

There are six categories of the smart grid being funded by the stimulus. Below you'll find them listed along with a brief definition. A more thorough guide can be found here.

Advanced Metering Infrastructure - the installation of smart meters that can measure, store, send and receive real-time energy data
Customer Systems - energy management systems for buildings, facilities, appliances, and equipment
Electric Distribution Systems - devices, equipment, and/or software applications including substations, transformer banks, feeder lines, pole top transformers, and customer interconnection and communications systems
Electric Transmission Systems - devices, equipment, and/or software applications such as phasor measurement units, phasor data concentrators, and visualization tools that use phasor or other data in bulk power markets
Equipment Manufacturing - the manufacturing of all these smart grid components
Integrated and Crosscutting Systems - projects that cover two or more of the above categories

And as I said, utilities of all stripes were jumping at the chance to execute these projects.

In total, $4.5 billion will be doled out. You can see the full list of awardees here, but to show the range and scope of these projects, here are the biggest grants in each category, in the same order as above:

Advanced Metering Infrastructure - $200 million for Baltimore Gas & Electric to install nearly 2 million smart meters
Customer Systems - $11.4 million for Honeywell International (NYSE: HON) to provide automated peak pricing response to 700 commercial and industrial customers
Electric Distribution Systems - $136.1 million for Consolidated Edison (NYSE: ED) to deploy automation, monitoring, and two-way communication systems to enable the introduction of more renewable resources in New York
Electric Transmission Systems - $53.9 million for the Western Electricity Coordinating Council to install 250 phasor measurement units across the Western Interconnection in 14 states
Equipment Manufacturing - $19.3 million for the Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) to manufacture smart appliances and accelerate their commercialization
Integrated and Crosscutting Systems - these are the $200 million projects listed above; $200 million each for Duke Energy, NextEra Energy, Progress Energy, and PECO Energy

It's not hard to see why I love the smart grid.

It's the future unfolding right before our eyes and it's a pure economic win. So it doesn't get as tangled in the nonsense associated with clean energy sources.

It helps that the CEO of GE (NYSE: GE) has called in the biggest investment of the next 50 years. And that Cisco says it'll be “100 to 1,000 times bigger than the Internet.”

A Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) analyst recently told me they expect 80-140 million meters to be installed in the next 10 years. And they expect total smart grid investment of $215 billion in the next four to five years.

Needless to say, this is going to be huge.

But we're still way ahead of the curve...

So far, only 25% of the utilities in the U.S. have made a smart grid vendor decision. And according to a recent survey, 70% of Americans haven't even heard of the smart grid.

The time to invest is now.

Just yesterday, GE announced a new $200 million push into the sector. But you'll want to invest in pure plays to profit.

Echelon (NASDAQ: ELON) is looking ever more attractive as it makes strategic partnerships, taking a soup-to-nuts approach to smart metering and energy management. And on the utility side, MasTec (NYSE: MTZ) is looking like a good play on the transmission and distribution build-out.

Of course, being so early in this transition, you could buy the newly introduced NASDAQ Clean Edge Smart Grid ETF (NASDAQ: GRID) as a long-term bet.

And for even more information about the smart grid, its development, and other investment ideas, you can check out the whitepaper located here.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. In addition to smart meters and transmission systems, efficiency is going to be a huge part of the smart grid. Banning incandescent lights and replacing them with LEDs is an immediate, cost-effective way to drive down energy demand. And Jeff has found a $1.20 company with LED technology so exciting Forbes says it “has the capability to radically alter the entire energy landscape.”

The U.S. Navy, McDonald's, and Wal-Mart have already signed on to use it. You'll want to read about this company before the next big contract is announced.

Energy Themes for the Next Decade

Much of the editorial I produced this week were musings from Euromoney's Renewable Energy Finance Forum - Wall Street, which I attended last week.

You can find those pieces below, or by clicking here, here, here or here.

The gathering is a proverbial who's who of the energy finance world, and includes talks from senior investment bank officials, cleantech CEOs, venture capitalists, and policymakers.

It costs over two grand to attend, but the information presented is worth much more than that. So be sure to check out the coverage I've already presented as well as the continued coverage I'll deliver next week.

The Biggest Investment of the 21st Century

It's called the smart grid... and it's about to revolutionize the way we use our electricity.

GE and Google have already committed billions to this technology...

But a handful of "super-ups" are poised to dominate this $297 billion/year industry...

Get their names and ticker symbols here.

Today, for some light weekend reading, I'd like to show you one of the final PowerPoint slides delivered by Michael Liebreich, the CEO of Bloomberg New Energy Finance, which is a clearing house for all cleantech financial data, and a man I've seen give countless presentations.

The slide was entitled...

“Magnificent” Seven Decadal Themes (from here to 2020)

And all it said was the following:

Cost-competitive clean energy
Pervasive data
Transformation of transportation
Cities go green
Nuclear power on the march
Developing world leapfrogs
Technology (and other) black swans

Here's what it means...

Cost-competitive with pervasive data

It means sources of clean energy, while still marginally expensive, are undergoing rapid cost reductions. What the naysayers don't seem to realize is that renewables will soon be the cheap form of energy.

Coal and oil have had well over a century to get costs as low as possible... Renewables are only now reaching scale.

And pervasive data is allowing us to realize the full benefits of clean energy and its superiority over traditional fuels. (New Energy Finance is doing a great job of harnessing and synthesizing this data for me and you.)

So, for example, we know where the best renewable resources are in almost every country of the world; we know which companies are making the most economic and effective solar panels and wind turbines; we know which companies and governments are investing how much and where; we're starting to realize and document that coal and oil have a higher cost than the sticker price; and we're starting to know more and more everyday in real time.

We can flash to detailed charts showing the rapid cost reduction in solar on a whim:

Transforming transportation

Whether it's natural gas for big rig trucks, hybrid and electric vehicles, high-speed rail, or improved metro transit... the way we move goods and ourselves is changing.

It's sometimes hard to see the impact of all the small steps being taken, but dozens of cities and ports have converted their taxi and diesel truck fleets to natural gas. Every city I've been to recently has either clean diesel, hybrid, electric, or natural gas buses.

The use of high-speed rail is exploding in Europe and Asia, and is making its way to the U.S. And increasing fuel economy standards mean plenty of models are getting 40 miles per gallon or better.

The Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt are already the talk of the town, with demand expected to well outpace initial supply.

This is 2010. Only a neophyte would fail to see where we'll be in ten years — and fail to invest accordingly.

Just take a cue from Buffett, who has already purchased a major U.S. railroad and took a multi-billion-dollar stake in an up-and-coming Chinese battery maker.

Cities go green as the developing world leapfrogs

I covered this theme last week.

But the gist of it is that the population in the developing world is booming; in the next decade, cities like Mumbai, Manila, Jakarta, Delhi, and Sao Paulo will each soon be bigger than any U.S. city.

And as they develop, they don't have entrenched fossil fuel industries to fight. They are developing cleanly.

What this means is that U.S. cities will soon be smaller and seemingly outdated compared to cities we once considered "the Third World."

And the investment potential in green building products and clean infrastructure will be huge.

Nuclear power on the march

There are 439 operating reactors in the world... 59 are being built; 149 are on order or planned; 344 have been proposed.

These are the plants expected to be completed by 2016, per the World Nuclear Association.

Power reactors under construction, or almost so

Start Operation*		REACTOR	TYPE	MWe (net)
2010	India, NPCIL	Kaiga 4	PHWR	202
2010	India, NPCIL	Rawatbhata 6	PHWR	202
2010	Iran, AEOI	Bushehr 1	PWR	950
2010	Russia, Energoatom	Rostov 2	PWR	950
2010	India, NPCIL	Kudankulam 1	PWR	950
2010	Canada, Bruce Power	Bruce A1	PHWR	769
2010	Canada, Bruce Power	Bruce A2	PHWR	769
2010	Korea, KHNP	Shin Kori 1	PWR	1000
2010	China, CGNPC	Lingao II-2	PWR	1080
2010	Argentina, CNEA	Atucha 2	PHWR	692

2011	India, NPCIL	Kudankulam 2	PWR	950
2011	India, NPCIL	Kalpakkam	FBR	470
2011	Taiwan Power	Lungmen 1	ABWR	1300
2011	Russia, Energoatom	Kalinin 4	PWR	950
2011	Korea, KHNP	Shin Kori 2	PWR	1000
2011	China, CNNC	Qinshan 4-1	PWR	650
2011	China, CGNPC	Lingao 2-1	PWR	1080
2011	Pakistan, PAEC	Chashma 2	PWR	300
2011	Japan, Chugoku	Shimane 3	ABWR	1375

2012	Finland, TVO	Olkiluoto 3	PWR	1600
2012	China, CNNC	Qinshan 4-2	PWR	650
2012	Taiwan Power	Lungmen 2	ABWR	1300
2012	Korea, KHNP	Shin Wolsong 1	PWR	1000
2012	France, EdF	Flamanville 3	PWR	1630
2012	Russia, Energoatom	Vilyuchinsk	PWRx2	70
2012	Russia, Energoatom	Novovoronezh II-1	PWR	1070
2012	Slovakia, SE	Mochovce 3	PWR	440
2012	China, CGNPC	Hongyanhe 1	PWR	1080
2012	China, CGNPC	Ningde 1	PWR	1080

2013	China, CNNC	Sanmen 1	PWR	1100
2013	China, CGNPC	Ningde 2	PWR	1080
2013	Korea, KHNP	Shin Wolsong 2	PWR	1000
2013	USA, TVA	Watts Bar 2	PWR	1180
2013	Russia, Energoatom	Leningrad II-1	PWR	1070
2013	Korea, KHNP	Shin Kori 3	PWR	1350
2013	China, CGNPC	Yangjiang 1	PWR	1080
2013	China, CGNPC	Taishan 1	PWR	1700
2013	China, CNNC	Fangjiashan 1	PWR	1000
2013	China, CNNC	Fuqing 1	PWR	1000
2013	China , CGNPC	Hongyanhe 2	PWR	1080
2013	Slovakia, SE	Mochovce 4	PWR	440

2014	China , CNNC	Sanmen 2	PWR	1100
2014	China , CPI	Haiyang 1	PWR	1100
2014	China , CGNPC	Ningde 3	PWR	1080
2014	China , CGNPC	Hongyanhe 3	PWR	1080
2014	China, CNNC	Fangjiashan 2	PWR	1000
2014	China, CNNC	Fuqing 2	PWR	1000
2014	China, China Huaneng	Shidaowan	HTR	200
2014	Korea, KHNP	Shin-Kori 4	PWR	1350
2014	Japan, Tepco	Fukishima I-7	ABWR	1350
2014	Japan, EPDC/J Power	Ohma	ABWR	1350
2014	Bulgaria, NEK	Belene 1	PWR	1000
2014	Russia, Energoatom	Rostov 3	PWR	1070
2014	Russia, Energoatom	Beloyarsk 4	FNR	750

2015	Japan , Tepco	Fukishima I-8	ABWR	1080
2015	China , CGNPC	Yangjiang 2	PWR	1080
2015	China , CGNPC	Taishan 2	PWR	1700
2015	China , CPI	Haiyang 2	PWR	1100
2015	Korea, KHNP	Shin-Ulchin 1	PWR	1350
2015	Russia, Energoatom	Novovoronezh II-2	PWR	1070
2015	Japan , Tepco	Higashidori 1	ABWR	1385
2015	Japan, Chugoku	Kaminoseki 1	ABWR	1373

2016	Romania, SNN	Cernavoda 3	PHWR	655
2016	Russia, Energoatom	Leningrad II-2	PWR	1200
2016	Russia, Energoatom	Rostov 4	PWR	1200
2016	Russia, Energoatom	Baltic 1	PWR	1200
2016	Russia, Energoatom	Seversk 1	PWR	1200

* Latest announced year of proposed commercial operation.

Need I say more?

Technology (and other) black swans

Like I said, we're only a few steps into the energy race.

We started lighting our streets with coal in the 1810s. Drake found oil in Pennsylvania in 1859. Edison built the first coal plant in 1882.

You think there's much more innovation to be had in those industries? We can't even stop a leaking pipe in the Gulf.

But when did we seriously start applying technology to clean energy? Ten years ago?

The biggest breakthroughs haven't even come yet.

But we'll make sure you're ready to profit from them when they do.

Call it like you see it,

Nick

P.S. You can get caught up on the week's top-read articles from Green Chip Stocks and our sister publications Energy and Capital and Wealth Daily below.

New Law Guarantees this LED Company Shines: Uncle Sam Just Put Money in Your Pocket
Publisher Brian Hicks explains how a new government law guarantees you make profits in energy efficiency stocks.

Asia Establishes Cleantech Dominance: China is Best in Breed
Energy & Capital Editor Nick Hodge profiles clean energy process in Asia, and offers a few ways to profit from their energy hunger.

Electric Vehicle Investing: Something Every Investor Needs to Know about Electric Vehicles
Green Chip's Jeff Siegel discusses the realities of electric vehicle market penetration and mentions a stock investors can consider.

4 Reasons to Own Google (NASDAQ: GOOG): The Bullish Case for Google
Wealth Daily Analyst Adam Sharp makes the bullish case for Google (GOOG) shares

Energy Efficiency Emerges as Strongest Cleantech Sector: My Chat with the Street's Most Powerful Investment Bankers
Editor Nick Hodge goes over data presented by Wall Street bankers at a recent energy conference, and concludes that efficiency is the best investment right now.

Carbon Emissions Investing: 5 Stocks to Own Before Washington Puts a Price on Carbon
Green Chip Editor Jeff Siegel discusses the coming energy bill and the opportunities it could offer for investors.

The Fuel of the Future: Why Soros and Pickens Are Investing Early in this Transportation Technology
This brand-new report from Green Chip details how you could ride along for an easy 1,925% gains on the $1.50-per-gallon transportation technology that's going to power the 21st century.

Energy Efficiency Stocks: Out with the Old, In with the New, and Straight to the Bank
In a world with ever-shrinking budgets and skyrocketing energy costs, this little firm from Ohio is about to save homeowners, businesses, and state departments billions of dollars — every single year! Today, what it created is so cutting-edge, so universally useful that Forbes predicts it "… has the capability to radically alter the entire energy landscape.” This new report from Green Chip gives you all you need to know about this booming $1.20 engineering firm.

Why Silver will Always Beat Gold: The Magic Ratio
Wealth Daily Editor Luke Burgess explains to readers why silver investments always beat gold in uncertain markets, thanks to the "magic ratio".